"They used rumors and exaggerations.They exaggerated all kinds of news items to foster a negative attitude among Norwegians against the Palestinian issue and the Palestinian leadership..."

PA TV News:

TV report is "part of an incitement campaign started by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on a global level to affect the positions of countries that support Palestine."

Foreign Minister of Norway:

"The response from [PA] President's Abbas office yesterday, in conversation with our envoy, was that they also denounce this, and that they wish to pursue this."

by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik

The Palestinian Authority has rejected the findings of NRK Norwegian state-owned TV, which showed PA messages of hatred against Jews and Israel as documented by Palestinian Media Watch. PA TV described the TV report as part of a global "incitement campaign" by Israel.

PA TV also interviewed the Palestinian Ambassador to Norway, Yasser Al-Najjar about the NRK report. He said that "the goal is to stop Norwegian aid to the Palestinian people and the PA." Norway is a major financial and political supporter of the PA.

The Palestinian Ambassador also tried to minimize the damage the story caused to the PA, saying "these are weak voices in the Norwegian media." In fact, NRK is the main TV station and the TV report had a significant impact. It led to high level debates in the Norwegian parliament and prompted the Norwegian Foreign Minister to call the office of PA Chairman Abbas for clarification.

The Palestinian Ambassador also challenged the accuracy of the Norwegian TV report, which was based on Palestinian Media Watch's documentation and its book Deception. The Ambassador claimed that "they used rumors and exaggerations. They exaggerated all kinds of news items to foster a negative attitude among Norwegians against the Palestinian issue and the Palestinian leadership, but all this failed."

PMW documented in Deception that the PA has a policy of sending one message to the international community while disseminating a contradictory message to its own people. This policy is being repeated here.To the Palestinian public, the PA rejects PMW's findings as "rumors and exaggerations." However, when the Norwegian Foreign Ministry called the office of PA Chairman Abbas, the PA accepted the Norwegian complaint, "denounced" the hate incitement, and promised to "pursue" it. In the words of the Norwegian Foreign Minister answering questions in parliament:

"Now I really need to emphasize that the response from [PA] President's Abbas office yesterday, in conversation with our envoy, was that they also denounce this, and that they wish to pursue this. I take that as a positive sign. We are going to follow up [and see] that they actually do it."

So does the PA actually "denounce" the hate incitement on PA TV or see it as "exaggerations" and part of an "Israeli incitement campaign?"

It depends on who the PA is talking to.

The following is an excerpt of the PA TV phone interview with the PA Ambassador to Norway:

PA TV host: "In a surprising step, the official Norwegian TV channel [NRK] broadcast a report in which it claims that PA TV spreads hatred against Israel... These claims come as part of an incitement campaign started by the Israeli Foreign Ministry on a global level to affect the positions of countries that support Palestine... [Ambassador] Yasser, how do you explain the change in the Norwegian media against the Palestinian media, and especially [official] PA TV?"

Ambassador Yasser Al-Najjar: "First of all, we cannot describe the Norwegian media as having [only] one source or as uniform... The [Israeli] campaign began after the President's (Mahmoud Abbas) and the Palestinian leadership's decision to turn to the UN... The [Israeli] goal is clear to all the Norwegian political parties and to the Norwegian Foreign Ministry. The goal is to stop Norwegian aid to the Palestinian people and the PA."

PA TV host: "Mr. Yasser, what is the role of the diplomatic delegation and the Palestinian embassy in dealing with this issue, and updating the [Palestinian] political leadership to get an explanation from Norway, which strongly supports the Palestinian issue?"

Ambassador Yasser: "Don't worry. These are weak voices in the Norwegian media... Today we were in contact with the Norwegian Foreign Ministry and Norwegian [political] figures, and with friendly [political] parties, to tell them the truth and to protect [our] institutions, including PA TV... Two days ago, I was interviewed on the Norwegian channel with the Israeli ambassador. They used rumors and exaggerations. They exaggerated all kinds of news items to foster a negative attitude among Norwegians against the Palestinian issue and the Palestinian leadership, but all this failed... Don't worry. We are present and we have experience, praise Allah, in dealing with the counter information spread by Israel. Two days ago we discovered that the Israeli embassy hired a company to direct the information in Norway, and has paid them about half a million dollars to execute this attack. This is known among all the political circles in Norway."